S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                  8240

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                              May 11, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced by M. of A. KAVANAGH -- read once and referred to the Commit-
  tee on Housing

AN  ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York and the
  emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, in  relation
  to the establishment of rent boards

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivision a of section 26-510 of the administrative  code
of the city of New York is amended to read as follows:
  a.  There shall be a rent guidelines board to consist of nine members,
appointed by the mayor UPON THE ADVICE AND CONSENT OF THE CITY  COUNCIL.
Two  members  shall be representative of tenants, two shall be represen-
tative of owners of property, and five shall be public members [each  of
whom].  EACH  OF  THE  PUBLIC MEMBERS shall have had at least five years
experience in [either] PUBLIC SERVICE,  PHILANTHROPY,  SOCIAL  SERVICES,
URBAN PLANNING, ARCHITECTURE, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SERVICE WITH NOT-FOR-PRO-
FIT CORPORATIONS, finance, economics or housing. One public member shall
be designated by the mayor UPON THE ADVICE AND CONSENT OF THE CITY COUN-
CIL  to serve as [chairman] CHAIR and shall hold no other public office.
No member, officer or employee of any municipal rent  regulation  agency
or the state division of housing and community renewal and no person who
owns  or manages real estate covered by this law or who is an officer of
any owner or tenant organization shall serve on a rent guidelines board.
One public member, one member representative of tenants and  one  member
representative  of  owners  shall serve for a term ending two years from
January first next succeeding the date of their appointment; one  public
member,  one  member  representative of tenants and one member represen-
tative of owners shall serve for terms ending three years from the Janu-
ary first next succeeding the date of their appointment and  two  public
members  shall serve for terms ending four years from January first next
succeeding the dates of their appointment. [The chairman shall serve  at

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD07766-02-9
              

A. 8240                             2

the  pleasure  of  the mayor.] Thereafter, all members shall continue in
office until their successors have been  appointed  and  qualified.  The
mayor  UPON  THE  ADVICE  AND CONSENT OF THE CITY COUNCIL shall fill any
vacancy  which may occur by reason of death, resignation or otherwise in
a manner consistent with the [original appointment] PROVISIONS  OF  THIS
SUBDIVISION.  A  member  may  be removed by the [mayor] CITY COUNCIL for
cause, but not without an opportunity to be heard in person or by  coun-
sel,  in  his  or  her  defense,  upon  not less than ten days notice. A
SUCCESSOR TO SUCH MEMBER SHALL  BE  APPOINTED  IN  ACCORDANCE  WITH  THE
PROVISIONS  OF  THIS SUBDIVISION TO SERVE THE BALANCE OF THE TERM OF THE
MEMBER WHO WAS REMOVED.
  S 2. Subdivision a of section 4 of section 4 of  chapter  576  of  the
laws  of 1974, constituting the emergency tenant protection act of nine-
teen seventy-four, as amended by chapter 349 of the  laws  of  1979,  is
amended to read as follows:
  a.  In  each  county wherein any city having a population of less than
one million or any town or village has determined the  existence  of  an
emergency  pursuant to section three of this act, there shall be created
a rent guidelines board to consist of  nine  members  appointed  by  the
[commissioner  of  housing  and community renewal] COUNTY EXECUTIVE upon
[recommendation] THE ADVICE AND CONSENT of the county legislature  which
[recommendation]  APPOINTMENT shall be made within thirty days after the
first local declaration of an emergency in such county; two such members
shall be representative of  tenants,  two  shall  be  representative  of
owners  of  property,  and  five shall be public members [each of whom].
EACH OF THE PUBLIC MEMBERS shall have had at least five years experience
in [either] PUBLIC SERVICE, PHILANTHROPY, SOCIAL SERVICES,  URBAN  PLAN-
NING,  ARCHITECTURE, SOCIAL SCIENCES, SERVICE WITH NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPO-
RATIONS, finance, economics or  housing.  One  public  member  shall  be
designated  by  the  [commissioner] COUNTY EXECUTIVE UPON THE ADVICE AND
CONSENT OF THE COUNTY LEGISLATURE to serve as [chairman] CHAIR and shall
hold no other public office. No  member,  officer  or  employee  of  any
municipal  rent  regulation  agency or the state division of housing and
community renewal and no person who owns or manages real estate  covered
by  this  law  or  who is an officer of any owner or tenant organization
shall serve on a rent guidelines board. One public  member,  one  member
representative  of tenants and one member representative of owners shall
serve for a term ending two years from January first next succeeding the
date of their appointment; one public member, one member  representative
of tenants and one member representative of owners shall serve for terms
ending  three  years  from the January first next succeeding the date of
their appointment and three public members shall serve for terms  ending
four  years  from  January  first  next  succeeding  the  dates of their
appointment.   Thereafter, all members shall serve  for  terms  of  four
years  each.    Members  shall continue in office until their successors
have been appointed and qualified. The [commissioner]  COUNTY  EXECUTIVE
UPON  THE  ADVICE  AND  CONSENT OF THE COUNTY LEGISLATURE shall fill any
vacancy which may occur by reason of death, resignation or otherwise  in
a  manner  consistent with the [original appointment] PROVISIONS OF THIS
SUBDIVISION. A member may be removed by the [commissioner] COUNTY LEGIS-
LATURE for cause, but not without an opportunity to be heard  in  person
or  by  counsel,  in  his defense, upon not less than ten days notice. A
SUCCESSOR TO SUCH MEMBER SHALL  BE  APPOINTED  IN  ACCORDANCE  WITH  THE
PROVISIONS  OF  THIS SUBDIVISION TO SERVE THE BALANCE OF THE TERM OF THE
MEMBER WHO WAS REMOVED. Compensation for the members of the board  shall
be  at  the rate of one hundred dollars per day, for no more than twenty

A. 8240                             3

days a year, except that the [chairman] CHAIR shall  be  compensated  at
the rate of one hundred twenty-five dollars a day for no more than thir-
ty  days  a  year.  The  board shall be provided staff assistance by the
division  of  housing  and  community  renewal. The compensation of such
members and the costs of staff assistance shall be paid by the  division
of housing and community renewal which shall be reimbursed in the manner
prescribed  in  THIS  section  [four of this act]. The local legislative
body of each city having a population of less than one million and  each
town  and  village in which an emergency has been determined to exist as
herein provided shall be authorized to designate one person who shall be
representative of tenants and one person who shall be representative  of
owners  of property to serve at its pleasure and without compensation to
advise and assist the county rent guidelines board in matters  affecting
the adjustment of rents for housing accommodations in such city, town or
village as the case may be.
  S 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that:
  (a)  the amendments to section 26-510 of the rent stabilization law of
nineteen hundred sixty-nine made by section one of this act shall expire
on the same date as such law expires and shall not affect the expiration
of such law as provided under section 26-520 of such law;
  (b) the amendments to section 4 of the emergency tenant protection act
of nineteen seventy-four made by section two of this act shall expire on
the same date as such act expires and shall not affect the expiration of
such act as provided in section 17 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974;
  (c) the rent boards as reconstituted pursuant to  this  act  shall  be
appointed  and confirmed within forty-five days after the effective date
of this act; and
  (d) upon the appointment of a rent board pursuant to the provisions of
this act, any existing predecessor rent board  shall  be  dissolved  and
such predecessor rent board shall have no further authority.